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Monday, January 30, 2017

Solving Our Dog’s Weight Problem

Sprite

After the loss of our Schnauzer terrier, Sprite, we decided
to rescue another dog. This was a difficult decision after all the issues we
had faced with Sprite. He had been abused (causing brain damage), needed
immediate surgery upon adoption, and very quickly started having seizures
because of the abuse. Although we loved him very much, he never improved and we
faced many trials throughout his nine-year life.

We heard about an event put on by Best Friends Animal
Society at our local fair grounds. My husband took off work, and we headed up to
look over hundreds of dogs available for adoption. I first spotted this cute
little dog from the other side of the cages. She was in with a group of
Chihuahuas. I kinda rushed my husband through the rest of the dogs to get
around to other side to see her.

Chloe

She was a small thing, only four pounds but nine months old.
She was emaciated and had bites from the other dogs all over her. We asked if
we could walk around the grounds with her. As we did, a young couple rushed up
to us, claiming they had looked at her. The husband really wanted her, but the
dog had bitten his wife. That made us nervous.

The pup apparently liked us, though. She cuddled in our arms and
gave us a lick. Her paperwork said she was a Tibetan terrier mix. We looked up
the breed on the Internet to see that they were a medium-sized dog that can get
up to thirty pounds—not exactly what we were looking for. As small as she was,
it was hard to picture her getting that big when she was already
nine-months-old. We took her back inside and found out she was a rescue from Los
Angeles. The Humane Society had rescued her from being euthanized.

Tibetan Terrier

We went through with the adoption.

We named her Chloe Rose and quickly fell in love with her.
She started to get bigger and bigger, or should I say wider and wider? It didn’t
seem like she ate much, but she had been starved. Five pounds, seven
pounds, ten pounds… Her weight kept going up. Her little legs were so short.
She started to waddle. Friends would come to the house and comment on her plump, little body.

I took her to the veterinarian where they did testing on
her, mainly thyroid testing. Everything checked out. I asked why he thought she
was overweight. He said dogs are like people, they come in all shapes and
sizes. He gave us a script for expensive, specialized dog food that should
balance her weight. Her weight didn’t change. She reached thirteen pounds.

During this time, we adopted two more rescue dogs. They are
both taller than Chloe but weigh around seven or eight pounds. They eat more
and are less active than Chloe. I thought I was going to go crazy trying to
figure out why she kept gaining weight.

Shih Tzu

One day, I happened to be looking through a dog reference
book. My mouth fell open when I spotted a picture of a Shih Tzu that looked
just like Chloe. I quickly started reading about the breed:

The oldest and smallest breed of the Tibetan holy dogs

Lion-like appearance

Sat around the palace of the Emperor of China and barked to warn of intruders

Long, flowing double coat

Sturdy build, solid and compact — carry good weight

Intelligence

Friendly, lively attitude

Short snout

Large eyes

Height at withers (9-10 ½ inches)

Weight (9-16 pounds)

Short legs

Oh, my gosh! This is totally our Chloe! And as James Mumsford, an
American teacher and composer, described the Shih Tzu: "Nobody knows how
the ancient eunuchs managed to mix together: a dash of lion, several teaspoons
of rabbit, a couple of ounces of domestic cat, one part court jester, a dash of
ballerina, a pinch of old man, a bit of beggar, a tablespoon of monkey, one
part baby seal, a dash of teddy bear, and, for the rest, dogs of Tibetan and
Chinese origin." Hilariously, this is our girl!

No more diets. No more testing. No more calling her fat or chubby. She
is solid and compact, the way she should be. Chloe is Chloe—perfect the way she
is. Problem solved.

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About Cindy

What Cindy's Books Give You:

* A clean read with no bedroom scenes or offensive language.* A tantalizing, fast-paced plot.* Down-to-earth heroes and heroines.* A rollercoaster ride of emotions.* A special dog to steal your heart.* A few added facts.